


Testing, Testing!

by orphan_account



Series: How They Really Feel [1]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Cute Crushes on Classmates, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Fortune Telling, Hubba's Love Tester but it came back to haunt people in a whole new world, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), no beta we die like Glenn, no certain route yet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:40:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23245666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Annette picks up a strange book at the marketplace, the merchant tells her about the ancient magic that surrounded it. She purchases it with the goal of decoding its magic, but she may have gotten more than what she had bargained for.
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic & Mercedes von Martritz, Annette Fantine Dominic/Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert
Series: How They Really Feel [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1671370
Comments: 2
Kudos: 19





	Testing, Testing!

Annette is naturally drawn to magic, and her admirable talent for both Faith and Reason had made her skilled in using them both in and out of battle. So when she and Mercedes had gone out to the marketplace, it was only natural for her to gravitate towards a certain stall that had tomes on display, as well as a few writing materials here and there.

“Good afternoon to you both, ladies,” the merchant greeted them. Annette was quick to go for the tomes, searching for something that might pique her interest. She liked practicing new spells she found, and the stall might provide her with more things to do. She hummed while inspecting the books that lay before her.

“Well, I do need some ink and new writing quills,” Mercedes said, a little more relaxed than her friend as she looked for ink and chose new quills. She paid the merchant before taking them and turning to Annette, who looked visibly sad at finding nothing to buy. “Annie, will you buy anything?”

The girl turned to Mercedes with a small pout on her face. “There were probably about 20 tomes here, and there was nothing I liked,” she said. She apologized to the merchant and thanked him for his time, but before they could leave, the man called their attention to a new, unopened crate. He opened it, revealing more tomes and books to the pair. Annette's eyes almost sparkled in delight, and she reached out for a book that looked old yet interesting.

“Aha! That old book?” the man started, and the pair's attention was turned to him as he began to speak. “It is said to have been imbued with ancient yet powerful magic. An old friend, a hierophant, gave it to me one day and told me so. However, I have hidden it for years. It has no use to me, for I do not have potential in magic, but I have been waiting for one who does. You look like a fine mage, young lady.”

“Thank you, mister, but what does this do?” Annette asked. Mercedes put a hand on her shoulder as she cautiously opened it, wary of any curses that might've been placed. However, Annette couldn't detect any malignant intent coming from the book. Once she had opened it wide, she was met with blank spaces, save for a few repetitive words. It looked like a book of forms.

The old merchant shrugged. “My friend said the magic of the ancient fortune teller Hubba guides those who choose to use it. How it's used, or how the magic works, is unknown to me. You seem equally as confused as I am, but the growing interest on your face proves to me that it will be in good hands, if it falls into yours.”

Mercedes and Annette shared a look with each other. Their eyes followed the format that was etched into the pages. Two lines asked for names, with an 'and' between them. Three circles that looked like they were supposed to be shaded in had three labels: family, friends, and lovers. Another two lines below that were blank. It looked more like a “pick-and-thou-shall-curse” book, but Annette could only sense mischief and not evil.

Finally, she decided that this book could be worth a try. She closed it and held it close to her chest before nodding. “I'd like to give this book a try. It looks old yet durable, and I can still feel the magic! It doesn't feel evil, either. How much would this cost?”

As the merchant named his price, the two felt relieved that he set it at a lower price for them. “You'll find more use in it than I would,” he said, bidding the two farewell after Annette paid for it. The pair's shopping trip was cut short after Annette felt more enthusiastic to try it out, and they made it back to the monastery's library to settle down and open the book in a secluded area.

“Now, what shall we do?” Annette started as they stared at one of the blank forms. The magic was still there, and she could feel it pulse through the pages under her hand. It seemed to call out to her, urging her to take a quill and write on its pages. Mercedes sat beside her, and like the girl, she couldn't feel any traces of evil in the book.

“The lines suggest we write on them, but to give someone your name is dangerous, as they could curse you with just the knowledge of it,” she said. Annette hummed in agreement, before dipping the tip of her quill in the inkwell. Mercedes watched as she wrote names of legends on the paper and shaded a circle. Family.

“I guess it's safer if we use fake names, but even if we think they're fake, there's someone out there who probably has that name. We're gonna use names of famous people instead!” Annette said, lifting the quill from the paper. She had no idea what to do with the two lines below, so she left them empty.

“It does sound a bit blasphemous to use the names of Saint Cichol and Saint Cethleann, but it seems to be the best options for us,” Mercedes said with a worried tone. They were in a monastery, and here they were, writing names of the Saints in an unknown book that had unknown effects on those who used it.

“Um, any idea what's gonna happen now?” Annette asked, but her friend shook her head. The girl stared at the paper, unsure of what was supposed to occur when the names were written. Her mind started to drift towards the idea of it being a fake, but those thoughts faded when she saw ink blooming into words on the two lines without any external help. The quill was sitting in its inkwell while words began to form sentences.

“Saint Cichol... would give anything to Saint Cethleann?” the words fell out of Mercedes as the two began to read the new words. “It makes sense. They were said to be father and daughter, and it would only be natural for them to be close.”

“Mercie, look!” Annette whisper-shouted as more words began to form. “Saint Cethleann thinks highly of Saint Cichol. And the other line... it says here that the family is inseperable! Oh, is this a friendship indicator?”

“Seems like it,” Mercedes replied. The two waited with a bated breath for any more effects, but after five minutes, it seemed like nothing else would happen. The invisible hand was done writing for them, and they were both relieved to see that it was safe for them to use. Just a silly tester, after all. “Annie, would you like to try it out with me?”

“Ah, well, we don't know what would happen to real people, but sure,” Annette said. She quickly prepared her quill, letting the excess ink drip before writing again. “Let's see... Annette Fantine Dominic... and Mercedes von Martritz,” she wrote before checking the circle that was labelled 'Friends'. The words came faster than the first time, as if the magic had been rejuvenated after years of rest.

“Annette never wants to part with Mercedes. Why, thank you, Annie,” Mercedes smiled at her with a slight flush to her face. Annette giggled as her friend continued to read the words out loud. “'Mercedes has a sweet spot for Annette. We've been friends since our days in the School of Sorcery, so of course I do.”

The two waited for the last line, but the sentence was only met with a stuttering Annette and a blushing Mercedes. It read, “Hoo! It's hotter than a Bolganone in here, get a room!” but none of them dared to speak it aloud. With a trembling hand, Annette closed the book and turned to Mercedes with a shaky smile.

“Um, I guess that's all for today?”

Annette hadn't dared to open the book again, but she still took it with her like a prized possession. So-called fortune tellers often lured hopeless romantics into fake readings with astoundingly high prices, and she thought that this book was just like that. However, the old merchant had entrusted her with this, and she just couldn't leave something like that laying around for someone to see. After all, it was ancient magic, just a little... misguided.

She had agreed to meet up with Ashe after classes today to study in their classroom. After the first time they've studied together, it quickly became a habit for them to meet up and learn from the other. Sometimes they met in the library, and sometimes in their classroom. No matter which area they chose, Annette always found herself enjoying the presence of her classmate. Maybe a little too much.

She quickly became flustered as she waited for Ashe in the classroom. The thought of them being close was enough to make her heart beat faster, and the word 'relationship' had brought a fraction of her mind to thoughts of the book, but that fraction was all that she needed. Guiltily taking it out of her book bag, she laid it on the table and prepared her writing materials.

Annette looked around the classroom for any signs of someone other than her, and once she deemed it safe, she hastily wrote her name with Ashe's beside it. She felt like one of those hopeless romantics who turned to fortune tellers about their love, and she guessed she wasn't any different with her budding crush on him. She sighed before moving her quill over the circle for 'Friends'.

Before she could cross it out, though, she started to wonder if 'Friends' and 'Lovers' had any difference if she shaded the other. “Maybe it would show our relationship as lovers?” she said to herself. She quickly became red as she realized what she had said, and she almost switched to the 'Friends' circle before something in the back of her mind stopped her.

_'You want to know what you guys will be like as lovers, anyway!'_ the nagging voice told her. She directed her quill over the circle for 'Lovers', and she held her breath as she quickly crossed it, closing her eyes and doing it as quick as she could. Before she could open her eyes, Ashe's voice reached her ears from the entrance and slammed the book shut, making the table tremble.

“Ashe!” she greeted him nervously, turning her body around too quickly. The inkwell got hit by her hand and it toppled over, spilling ink everywhere (and thankfully, in the opposite direction of the book) and she gasped. “Oh, no... I'm so sorry, um, I'll go clean this right up,” she offered. The boy ran to her, setting his bag onto another table before taking out a piece of cloth.

“No worries, I've got some washcloth with me,” Ashe said. Annette put the inkwell back up before it could ooze any more ink out, and she sighed as he started cleaning the table. Soon, the washcloth became too saturated to clean any more, but thankfully, most of the ink had been wiped off the table.

“I'm so, so sorry, I know this would stain,” Annette said, unconsciously pushing the book out of the wet area. Ashe shook his head, flashing a smile at Annette. The smile made Annette's heart flutter, and she was brought back to why she was so nervous in the first place. She eyed the book nervously as the boy went out to wring the ink onto some soil.

Finally alone to herself once more, she moved the book to the far side of the table to make space for their actual textbooks, and to forget about it during the study session. She would take a look at their results later, she told herself, as Ashe came back and wiped the remaining ink off.

“Ah, you've prepared your books and notes,” Ashe said before taking his own notes out. He was cautious of the wet spot on the table, and he huddled closer to Annette's body to avoid it. His movement almost made her squeak, but she held it in as she let him get closer to her.

Ah, this would be a long, _long_ study session.

When Annette retired for the afternoon, Ashe stayed behind in the classroom. Before any of them could notice before she left, the book pushed to the far corner of the table stayed there, and it naturally caught Ashe's attention. The cover was worn-out, and while it wasn't as thick as some of the dusty tomes in the library, Ashe still picked it up. There wasn't any title or anything, so he had to open it to learn more.

“Saint Cichol... Mercedes...” he began to read the entries, quietly speaking to himself, before his eyes landed on the entry with his name on it. From what he had read, this book was something to take note of relationships between people, and he continued even if the last line from Mercedes and Annette's entry surprised him.

“Annette Fantine Dominic and Ashe Ubert. Lovers...?” he murmured before blood rushed to his cheeks. Okay, their study sessions together definitely made him appreciate Annette more, and with her being so likable in general, it didn't take much for him to develop a teeny-tiny crush on her. But why would Annette take down notes for them like that? Thinking about it more made even the tips of his ears red.

“Annette doesn't have a dull moment with Ashe,” he read. He couldn't stop himself from smiling giddily. “Ashe is on the same page as Annette. 'My, they do get along nicely,' huh. They?”

Ashe didn't have a certain affinity for magic, but he knew that something was up with this book. Annette was probably curious about it, too, and had tried to investigate the type of magic used. He flipped through the pages, hoping to find more about it. On the last page, written in the corner in a small font was the name 'Fortune Teller Hubba'. He hadn't heard of that name before, but the title...

“Oh Goddess, this is to measure the relationship between people,” Ashe said in realization. The three circles represented what kind of relationship you wanted to measure between the two, he noted, and his blush only worsened at the crossed-out circle for 'Lovers'. Annette's handwriting was unmistakable, so it meant she was the one to put their names together. Did she...?

Ashe couldn't blush any harder.

**Author's Note:**

> it's a reference to hubba's tester thing in awakening and fates it's really funny
> 
> ;^D kudos and comments are highly appreciated!


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